HANSHIN TIGERS The last time the Tigers went to the Japan Series and lost (2003), they fell to fourth in the standings the following year as they worked to gel under then new manager Akinobu Okada. The same shouldnft be true of 2006; the team that won 87 games in f05 remains largely intact and will again be a force in f06. Prediction: 1st in Central LeagueProbable Line-up 2006 (2005 Stats) Pos. Name Avg HR RBI SB1. CF Norihiro Akahoshi .316 1 38 602. SS Takashi Toritani .278 9 52 53. 3B Makoto Imaoka .279 29 147 14. RF Tomoaki Kanemoto .327 40 125 35. LF Osamu Hamanaka .284 1 20 06. 1B Andy Sheets .289 19 85 17. C Akihiro Yano .271 19 71 18. 2B Atsushi Fujimoto .249 1 36 3

OffenseIn f06 the Tigers will be looking to improve upon a team average of .274 and a record of 14-19 in one run games. Akahoshi will again be the catalyst at the top of the order; his dazzling speed on the bases will again give opposing pitches/catchers nightmares. Akahoshi stole 60 bases last year and 185 over the past three years.Toritani didnft suffer a sophomore slump but didnft progress as hoped either, although pre-season form hints that we may see him add some pop this year.Imaoka, Sheets and Kanemoto will again provide the punch in the middle of the order and look to replicate their combined 88 HRs in f05.Shane Spencer was largely a bust last year and expect it to be a short season for him if he doesnft hit.Fujimoto and Hamanaka donft provide much offensively, but get on base well. Team icon and catcher Akihiro Yano seems to get better with age, setting a career HR best in f05, at age 38 he remains one of the top catchers in the league.The Hanshin bench features steady hitters/fielders in Sekimoto and Hiyama. Look for elder statesman Atsushi Kataoka and former Hiroshima Carp outfielder Koujiro Machida to take the pinch hitting duties.Probable Rotation 2006 (2005 Stats) Probable Rotation Pos. Name W L Sv ERA1. SP Kei Igawa 13 9 0 3.862. SP Tsuyoshi Shimonoyagi 15 3 0 2.993. SP Kazuya Andoh 11 5 0 3.394. SP Shinobu Fukuhara 8 14 0 3.515. SP Naohisa Sugiyama 9 6 0 2.946. CL Tomoyuki Kubota 5 4 27 2.12

PitchingTigers pitching led the league in ERA in f05 with 3.24 and look to be as competitive in f06.Igawa anchors the rotation and should rack up 15 wins and 200 innings or so. Shimonoyagi provided the surprise last year with a career best 15-3 record, expecting a repeat may be a little tough for the 38 year old. Fukuhara is penciled in as the number three starter isnft overpowering but entices the ground ball well. Andoh and Sugiyama round out the rotation with newcomer Chris Oxspring to provide spot starts or more as needed.The bullpen was the real strength of last yearfs squad and protected leads like no other. The eJFKf combination of Jeff Williams, Fujikawa and Kubota return to hold leads and generally shut everyone down.The three combined for around a 1.90 ERA in f06.